William Carson Betterly
William Carson Betterly is my 4 greatgrandfather. He was born in Massachusetts in 1758. At the end of the French and Indian War, King George was looking to the colonies to pay for the cost of that war. The colonists, especially in Massachusetts, were not too happy at the prospects of increased taxes. Hence the cause of the Boston Tea Party. Can you imagine being a teenager at this point in history? Hearing the arguments and counter arguments about the politics of the day. Talk of loyalty and talk of revolution. This was William's world. He and his brother, Thomas, joined up with the Massachusetts army to fight the King's invading soldiers. William came to serve under George Washington as a corporal. He was at Valley Forge during that brutal winter when the army was wondering if it might be their last. To this point they had only known defeat. William was with General Washington when the Continental Army crossed the frozen Delaware River and caught the Hessians celebrating Christmas in Trenton New Jersey in 1776 and experienced their first victory.
The family oral history says that when William married his wife Ann, George and Martha gave them a tea set as a wedding present. The Betterlys settled in Butler Valley Pennsylvania, an area in Eastern Pennsylvania. William died in 1841 but Ann went on to reach the age of 102! William is listed in the journals of the Daughters of the American Revolution. I like to think that the love of this country and this freedom that was started by ancestors like William and Ann will continue forward through our generations. I hope that which those early progenitors went through will be appreciated by those of us who are the beneficiaries. HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY, a [couple] month[’s] late [but a good reminder].
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In recent years, I learned that William Carson Betterly was my fith-great grandfather. I, too had heard stories that he served under George Washington, but never found anything corroborating that, nor anything indicating he rose higher than a private. Have you seen anything backing that up what you had heard? Also, I had heard that the woman he married after the was had served as a cook in Washington's army. Do you know of anything that confirms that? Thanks, cousin!
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